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I would go get it....

I myself would certainly like to go after that cache. But I would more than likely go through Ft Kent to get it. The advantage of having a valid passport. I do however agree with you that having the border patrol detain you for walking "near" the border would be a huge violation of my civil rights as a US citizen. I am by no means a political rabbel-rouser, but I am also not a fan of undo process. But that is just my opinion.

I'm not saying that it wouldn't be offensive to me to be detained for NOT crossing the border while I was just going after a geocache. I'm saying a blanket bashing of the border patrol for doing their job is out of line. In today's world, where terrorism has become more prevalent, what's wrong with taking a few extra precautions when approaching the border to find a geocache? Why can't we look at it as the Border Patrol has a difficult job to do and why do we, as Geocachers, have to make it more difficult. Someone should just stop at the Border Patrol station and say, "This is what we're doing.". We've talked about approaching the state to see what we can do to be able to place more caches in state parks. If a group of cachers creates an issue over just one cache that's so close to the border how is that going to look when we try to place caches in the state parks? Even if you don't agree that the necessity exists for such stringent controls being in place at the border they are, in fact, in place. It's exactly the same premise as not agreeing that you should be required, by law, to wear your seatbelt. My personal feeling on seatbelts is that if you don't wear one you're a moron but there shouldn't be a law saying you have to wear one. I won't drive my car if someone in the car is unbuckled. It's either buckle up or get out and walk. If I couldn't get to the cache from the United States without disturbing the Border Patrol and I didn't have a passport the cache would simply go unfound by me.

I'm not bashing my local law enforcement officer. I am bashing Federal Law Enforcement officers. Unless an officer is an Oath Keeper ( http://oathkeepers.org/oath/ ), they will get bashed. Especially when a Border Patrol officer states according to Surfacewarrior, that " I ask about walking in completely on the US side and he said I would be seen and stopped." That is a pretty ballsy thing for a cop to say, considering they would need to have suspicion that a crime has bee committed and last time I checked, walking on one side of a border is not a crime, or even probable cause.

I would think that bushwacking through the woods, through people's back yards, to get to one of the few areas of the international border that's in limbo, carrying electronics and possibly a backpack, would be plenty suspicious. If I were caught doing something like that, I would hope someone would ask me a few questions as to what I was doing.

I'm not saying that it wouldn't be offensive to me to be detained for NOT crossing the border while I was just going after a geocache. I'm saying a blanket bashing of the border patrol for doing their job is out of line. In today's world, where terrorism has become more prevalent, what's wrong with taking a few extra precautions when approaching the border to find a geocache? Why can't we look at it as the Border Patrol has a difficult job to do and why do we, as Geocachers, have to make it more difficult. Someone should just stop at the Border Patrol station and say, "This is what we're doing.". We've talked about approaching the state to see what we can do to be able to place more caches in state parks. If a group of cachers creates an issue over just one cache that's so close to the border how is that going to look when we try to place caches in the state parks? Even if you don't agree that the necessity exists for such stringent controls being in place at the border they are, in fact, in place. It's exactly the same premise as not agreeing that you should be required, by law, to wear your seatbelt. My personal feeling on seatbelts is that if you don't wear one you're a moron but there shouldn't be a law saying you have to wear one. I won't drive my car if someone in the car is unbuckled. It's either buckle up or get out and walk. If I couldn't get to the cache from the United States without disturbing the Border Patrol and I didn't have a passport the cache would simply go unfound by me.

"Those who surrender freedom for security will not have, nor do they deserve, either one." — Thomas Jefferson

I would think that bushwacking through the woods, through people's back yards, to get to one of the few areas of the international border that's in limbo, carrying electronics and possibly a backpack, would be plenty suspicious. If I were caught doing something like that, I would hope someone would ask me a few questions as to what I was doing.

I hope you realize that EVERY Geocacher looks plenty suspicious wherever we are caching. I'd be more suspicious of someone at night stopped in an urban or suburban area, lurking around, than someone in the daytime in wilderness/rural Maine with backpacks and "electronic devices" (these electronic devices you say us Geocachers use...don't they merely resemble a cell phone? They certainly are no bigger than a cell phone, so I don't know how that could look suspicious). What you don't get is that merely looking suspicious is not probably cause to be questioned or even detained by law enforcement. Many of you have become sheep in this society where you immediately bow down to a flash of the police badge or car or uniform even though you shouldn't have to. There is a Constitution for a reason. Maybe you should read it.

I really think that if the Canadians or the Americans REALLY were terribly concerned about the security of the border, especially in this spot they would change things. But obviously they don't give a damn.

Your reply is not germaine in this era, not when terrorists use aircraft to destroy buildings like the towers in New York and their attempt at the Pentagon. Like I said in my post, if a cacher were to stop by the office and let Border Patrol know what they're doing it would probably go an incredible distance toward not having an incident that could easily get blown out of proportion. And just one cacher reacting negatively could give an incredibly bad name to the game here in Maine. Is one geocache really worth it? We should go out of our way to ensure we don't stir up trouble for future cachers and the younger ones currently involved. It's not the "Serious Tool Game".

Your reply is not germaine in this era, not when terrorists use aircraft to destroy buildings like the towers in New York and their attempt at the Pentagon. Like I said in my post, if a cacher were to stop by the office and let Border Patrol know what they're doing it would probably go an incredible distance toward not having an incident that could easily get blown out of proportion. And just one cacher reacting negatively could give an incredibly bad name to the game here in Maine. Is one geocache really worth it? We should go out of our way to ensure we don't stir up trouble for future cachers and the younger ones currently involved. It's not the "Serious Tool Game".

Do you feel you need to stop into every town's police station and inform them that you are Geocaching in their municipality when you enter another town? I doubt it. When a Government's actions have instilled enough fear into it's citizenry where they feel they must check into a border parol office to tell them that they are Geocaching in that area, then we have a tyrannical government who has been enabled by people such as you by allowing them to erode their Constitutional rights without any accountability.

If I am not crossing the border, then there is no reason for me to have any contact with the Border Patrol. Plain and simple. Just as there will be no reason for them to have any contact with me. No one in my own country is going to stop me and say "paper's, please" if I am not violating a law.

It's funny. I was stopped for speeding twice in the last ten days while Geocaching. The first was for doing 66 in a 45 above Calais in Woodland. Hey, I broke the law. Police are there to enforce those laws and they did. The officer gave me a warning. Last night I got stopped by Falmouth PD coming off of 295 near Martin's Point. 50 in a 35. He clocked me just as I was slowing down into the new speed limit zone. Again, he was there enforcing the LAW. Again, a warning. I know how to handle police officers who are truly ENFORCING the law, but to be warned that if I am to NOT cross the border and to walk on the U.S. side to a certain point, I will CERTAINLY be stopped, detained, and questioned? NO f$%^ing way. And anyone who will use the dubious fact that "terrorists use aircraft to destro buildings like the tower in New York and their attempt at the Pentagon" as reason to erode MY Constitutional RIGHTS and civil liberties, has no concept of the truth.

I myself would certainly like to go after that cache. But I would more than likely go through Ft Kent to get it. The advantage of having a valid passport. I do however agree with you that having the border patrol detain you for walking "near" the border would be a huge violation of my civil rights as a US citizen. I am by no means a political rabbel-rouser, but I am also not a fan of undo process. But that is just my opinion.

I'm not saying that it wouldn't be offensive to me to be detained for NOT crossing the border while I was just going after a geocache. I'm saying a blanket bashing of the border patrol for doing their job is out of line. In today's world, where terrorism has become more prevalent, what's wrong with taking a few extra precautions when approaching the border to find a geocache? Why can't we look at it as the Border Patrol has a difficult job to do and why do we, as Geocachers, have to make it more difficult. Someone should just stop at the Border Patrol station and say, "This is what we're doing.". We've talked about approaching the state to see what we can do to be able to place more caches in state parks. If a group of cachers creates an issue over just one cache that's so close to the border how is that going to look when we try to place caches in the state parks? Even if you don't agree that the necessity exists for such stringent controls being in place at the border they are, in fact, in place. It's exactly the same premise as not agreeing that you should be required, by law, to wear your seatbelt. My personal feeling on seatbelts is that if you don't wear one you're a moron but there shouldn't be a law saying you have to wear one. I won't drive my car if someone in the car is unbuckled. It's either buckle up or get out and walk. If I couldn't get to the cache from the United States without disturbing the Border Patrol and I didn't have a passport the cache would simply go unfound by me.

Oh Poooooor Border Patrol. They have such a hard job. Come off it..... You really surprise me JustKev. I expected more from someone with the Eagle, Globe, and Anchor so prominently displayed as your Avatar. Guess you shouldn't judge a book by it's cover